All Together Now
by Junjou-DeathNote
Summary: SPOILERS FOR EPISODE 5 A bite is death sentence. A slow agonizing death sentence. And when Death calls to a certain man at the worst possible time, he couldn't just deal with this all alone. Luckily, his friends are there to help him out. Rated M for coarse language.


"_We're here for you Lee..."_

_"Don't worry..."_

"_You're not doing this alone..."_

"Lee, please, please wake up! Wake up! Please..."

Hazily, Lee's eyes opened. The blurred outline of a scared little girl entered his vision, her eyes huge with fear. "Lee!" She gasped her voice high-pitched. "I was so scared." She whimpered, "I-I thought you left me... I... I..."

Lee groaned, every part of him feeling numb, his limbs, his brain... He couldn't feel much. Barely anything at all.

"I... I saw my parents." Clementine voice sounded ragged, raw with grief.

_No... That was them... Oh Clem..._ "Come here sweet pea." Lee rasped, pulling her close. Clementine collapsed onto his chest, her small frame shuddering.

"They're dead. They really are." Her voice was trembling as she spoke. Lee patted her weakly on the back in a comforting manner. Gently, he nudged her off and slowly sat up. He grunted, his bones felt stiff and sore and his body was screaming in weariness.

"Clementine." Lee's voice was nothing but a soft whisper, so fragile that it was as soft as a breeze. "We have to get out of here as fast as we can."

"We can't!" Clementine cried, "There's thousands of them outside!"

"We have to," Lee insisted, "I'll protect you, we'll push through them."

"No no that's crazy!" Clementine argued, "I saved you, we're safe here, I locked us in."

A faint laughter was heard at the back of Lee's mind. _"She's going to be trapped in a room with a man who's going to turn. She'll have to put you down like you did with me, right?"_ Larry's voice taunted him lightly.

_No, no that won't happen! _"Get that door open." Lee rasped.

"I can't!" Clementine shook her head.

"Do it!" Lee commanded strongly, his voice as loud as he could muster it to be. Clementine stared at him, her eyes wide and questioning, but she stood up and walked over to the garage door. She grabbed hold of one of the handles. Lee struggled to his feet and forced himself towards the other handle on the opposite side.

"It was only a little open when I found it." Clementine said, "I closed it to keep us safe."

"Pull on three." Lee ordered. Clementine nodded. "One, two, three!"

Together, they both heaved at the door, using all the strength they could. Lee tried his best, but the virus in his body prevented him from using all of his power. It had drained him.

"_Come on Lee! Come on Clementine! Pull!"_ Duck was cheering, urging them to do good as he fisted the air in encouragement. Lee would've grinned if he hadn't felt so drained.

But, they just couldn't do it. Clementine and Lee sopped, gasping for breath. Lee coughed, the fever making him feel a bit dizzy. He panted, suddenly finding it hard to breath. His vision began to blur a bit as he put his hands on his knees, trying to suck in some sir.

"_Come on Lee!"_ The outline of Mark was shaking Lee on the shoulders, _"You can do this! Fight it off!"_

"See?" Clementine said. She was looking at Lee in fear and confusion, unable to comprehend why he looked so pale, why his eyes were beginning to take a sick shade of yellow, why he was suddenly so sick.

"_Lee." _Katjaa looked at him with gentle yet stern eyes. _"She needs to know, she needs to know about your bite."_

_Damn... You're right. _Lee agreed. "Clem, honey." Lee murmured. Clementine looked at him, still confused. Lee pulled out his arm and turned his wrist, revealing the missing flesh engraved in the mark of a bite.

Clementine's eyes widened. She blinked a few times, her head leaning forwards as if she didn't see it correctly. "What... what... w-what happened?" She breathed. But the tears soaking her eyes said that she already knew what it was, what it meant. Lee just stared back sadly, brokenly as he watched his beloved little girl panic.

"No." She gasped. "No, that's not... No. No. NO. NO!" She cried, her small hands close to her heart as her breathing began to deepen.

"Yes. Yes Clem, it is." Lee whispered sadly, his heart twisting at her ill reaction.

She put her hands into fists and held them close to her mouth. She looked down, down at the bite, down at his death sentence. She whimpered, fear now clearly evident in her eyes as she shook.

"There's no time to be upset." Lee whispered.

"Okay, I'll try not to be." Clementine tried to sound strong, but her voice was cracking with sorrow. Lee winced. _I'm so sorry Clem..._

"_You can't do this right now." _Chuck was shaking his head, _"She's not safe here, in this place. You got to move."_

_I know. _Lee answered the old man gently. He struggled to pull himself up, trying to find his balance as he staggered upwards. He caught a glimpse of something and turned his head. There was a walker, sitting in what appeared to be a security office just beyond a glass window. Just near it, there was a door, an exit. A way out.

"I think there might be a way out over there." Clementine said, eyeing the walker nervously. Lee took another look at the walker. It was just sitting on the chair, trapped maybe?

He could hear Kenny snorting. "_What a dumb son-of-a-bitch, just relaxing in his fucking chair like he's still guarding the place."_

Lee mentally chuckled to himself, glad for Kenny's sense of humour to lighten the mood. _At least it'll make for an easy kill._

"_Damn right it is."_

Lee turned his attention back to Clementine.

"Good. Good girl. Let's go. I might be a little slow." Lee said. As he began to walk towards the walker trapped in the room, he gasped as his legs suddenly felt numb. He would've fallen if it hadn't been for the counter at his side for him to lean on. Clementine rushed to his side, holding him sturdy in place.

"Here, I'll help you." She put a hand on his back, gently nudging him forwards. Slowly, Lee dragged himself towards the door, his vision now foggy and blurred. His legs felt like jell-o, the gears in his brain were just stuttering in place.

One of his legs suddenly lost feeling and Lee collapsed onto it, shifting all of his balance to that side, causing him to nearly topple over if it wasn't for Clementine holding him in place.

"I got you." She said quickly as she helped prop him up against the counter. "You can lean on me if you have to." She offered.

"I'm okay, I'm okay..." Lee insisted, trying to reassure her, but it seemed that it did quite the opposite of that. She whimpered again.

"I thought I was helping by bringing you in here." She said, her voice wracked with guilt.

"You couldn't have known... I should've told you..." Lee said, making it look as if it his fault so she wouldn't feel bad.

She looked away, "It was scary at the hotel." She admitted softly, fearfully.

"Yeah." Lee agreed.

"Keep going, we're almost there!" Clementine urged him, nudging him again softly.

Lee grunted as he continued to drag himself, but with each step he took his energy evaporated bit by bit.

When they finally reached the end of it, Lee's body just screeched for rest, screeched for a break. Lee ended up staggering towards the wall, right next to a radiator. He plopped himself down beside, sitting down, breathing heavily as he tried to gain some more energy.

Clementine ran up to him, her entire body now shaking in panic. "Get up Lee, the door's right here!" She motioned towards it, her voice cracking and her face starting to twist up in grief.

Lee closed his eyes and moaned. His legs were trembling beneath him as he tried to stand up, tried to move. His body just started to shut itself down, and his legs were just no longer capable.

"_Come on you pansy, move your ass!"_ Larry yelled his eyes ablaze as he watched Lee. _"You can do better than this, you sick bastard!"_

Lee tried harder, Larry's 'words of encouragement' still ringing trough his ears. Eventually, he just fell back down in place, shaking his head.

"I can't." He whispered.

"You have to." Clementine begged, staring at him in pain.

"Clem... I can't move. This is it for me here." Lee said, praying that she would understand.

"Please, PLEASE, try to get up!" She wailed her voice high in panic.

"_You just are going to let her beg? Or are you going to actually do something?" _Larry asked sourly.

"_Shut the hell up! You're not helping!"_ Kenny snapped at the old man. Larry scoffed, but didn't say anything else.

Lee bowed his head, trying to concentrate all of his strength. He gritted his teeth together as he tried again, trying to stand, for Clem's sake. _Dammit, come on, come on! Stand mother fucker, stand!_

Yet all he did was end up collapsing again, completely exhausted. "I can't." Lee said. "You don't have much time. You got to do something, fast." Lee told her.

"Like what?" She whispered.

"_She has to shoot you." _Chuck said, _"So you don't turn and go after her."_

"_She's just a child!" _Katjaa said, _"Don't tell her that, tell her to find a way out."_

Lee hesitated before agreeing with Katjaa. "You need to get out of here as soon as you can." He told the girl.

"I-I can't leave you!" She cried, shaking her head slightly.

"Just work on getting out, okay?" Lee said.

Clementine stood up, scanning the room with huge, owl-like eyes. "We'll figure it all out." Lee reassured her. "Don't worry." Clementine nodded, looking around once more.

Lee turned his head, looking around too.

"_She has to get into that room there, right?" _Ben asked timidly.

"_Guess she can't just open it, can she? It's probably locked, isn't it?" _Carley asked.

_Let's see. _Lee responded to both of them. "Just... start by getting that door open." He said to Clem.

Clementine went over to the door, turning the door handle. "It's locked." She informed him.

"_I knew it." _Carley said, a hint of triumph and teasing in her voice.

Lee would've rolled his eyes at the statement. "It's no big deal." Lee said to Clem. "It's just a glass window.

Hearing that, Clementine curled her small hand into a fist and banged her hand against it, attempting to break it. "Ow!" She yelped, rubbing her hand.

"Not with your hand." Lee whispered.

She sighed, unsure what to do.

"_The type of glass she's dealing with isn't very strong. In fact, it'd be quite easy to break, provided you have the right tool to do so." _Doug informed Lee.

_I could've figured that out. _Lee rolled his eyes.

"_Just informing you with the options." _Doug shrugged.

"_There's a baseball bat over there!" _Mark pointed at the abandoned object, near-by the counter.

Lee turned his head. Sure enough, there actually was a baseball bat, lying there. "There's a baseball bat under the counter Clem." He said hoarsely, "You can use that."

She scampered towards it, holding it tightly in her hands.

"Use the bat to shatter the window." Lee said, "So you can reach in, okay?"

"Okay." Clementine quickly obeyed and walked towards the door.

"_The broken glass can be dangerous, remember?" _Katjaa warned.

_You're right. _"Watch out for broken glass." Lee warned her.

Clementine nodded. She took the bat, aimed, and smashed it through the window. It shattered quickly pieces fell to the floor, not harming Clementine in any way.

"Good job." Lee praised her.

Clementine looked at Lee with worry evident on her face. She stared into the broken window, fearfully eyeing the walker in disdain. She shivered and let out a whimper.

"Don't be afraid of him honey." Lee murmured. "You're smart. He isn't. You're smarter than all of them."

Clementine nodded slightly. Lee hesitated. She had broken the window, but there was no way for her to reach the lock on the inside of the room. _What now?_

"_The chair! The chair Lee!" _Duck said excitedly, _"She can use that!"_

_Yeah... Good job Duck_.

"Grab the chair, Clem. Use it to reach in, to the lock."

She pulled the chair in front of the door and climbed up onto it. Lee watched as her small hands went for the doorknob. He heard a rattling sound, followed by a click before he saw Clementine get off and push away the chair. She paused, shaking.

"Clem, open it." Lee urged her.

Slowly, Clementine pushed open the door. She inched towards the walker. "It's... It's trapped."

"This'll be easy then." Lee said. "He's got keys, probably to that door, and everything you need."

Clementine looked at the keys and the gun attached to the walker. The look on her face clearly said how she didn't want to do this. She looked back at Lee with pleading eyes, but Lee didn't answer.

"_There are handcuffs on the ground there." _Chuck said quietly.

"_So?" _Ben asked.

"_Lee's got to handcuff himself. In case something goes wrong." _Chuck answered the teen. Ben blinked nervously, staring at Lee.

"There are handcuffs on the ground." Lee told Clem. "Get them."

"Okay Lee." Clementine examined the walker one last time before quickly snatching the handcuffs on the ground.

Lee looked at his hand. It was bloody due to that glass shard.

"_You got to do it." _Chuck said. Lee gave Chuck a pained look.

"_For Clementine's sake." _Katjaa murmured.

Lee took a deep breath. He never wanted it to come to this, but... It was for Clem's safety... This is all for her...

"Put the handcuffs on me." Lee said weakly. "Attach me to this."

"What?" Clementine was startled at Lee's request. She looked at him with tearful eyes. "Why?"

"No matter what happens, you're safe then." Lee said.

Clementine stared at his hand, shaking her head, "I don't know..."

"Just do it sweetie." Lee urged the young girl. Hesitantly, Clementine crouched down beside Lee, the handcuffs shivering and rattling in her hands. "Make sure they're tight." He added. He didn't want them to get loose.

"I don't- I don't want to do this." Clementine sobbed a bit, but her hands still proceeded to cuff Lee's arm. She attached it to the radiator beside Lee.

"You have to. It'll keep you safe." Lee said softly. When she finished, she looked at Lee, her gaze mournful and questioning. Lee looked at the walker, still trapped in his chair, trying to free itself. "You only have to deal with him now." He said. Clementine looked back disdainfully. It was trying to claw its way out of the chair, its body withering helplessly. "He's trapped over there." Lee said. "If you're careful, you can get what you need from him."

"The keys and then the gun." Clementine stated, looking at Lee for confirmation.

"Yeah, the keys and the gun." Clementine gulped, beads of sweat beginning to form on her forehead. "Just don't be afraid." Lee encouraged softly. "If anything gets dangerous, you're faster than he is."

Clementine looked back at the walker, specifically, the area where the keys and the gun were at. "What should I get first?" She asked.

"_The gun, she needs it to survive. You can't live without one. " _Kenny said.

"_What about the keys? In case something happens? A gun won't help you escape the place. " _Ben said timidly. Kenny whipped around, about to snap at the kid. Ben blinked, and nervously took a step back, but Kenny just shook his head and shut his mouth.

"_She can get them both." _Carley said, acting neutral. _"But it's really your choice Lee."_

_Yeah... Yeah it is..._ Lee said. He contemplated for a moment. While the keys were good in case she needed to run, the gun would be the thing that would protect her the most. And just in case he turned... Then...

"Get the gun, Clem. Always the gun." Lee said.

Clementine nodded weakly and walked up to the reanimated corpse. Its hand lashed out at her, but she kept a safe distance. She stretched out her hand towards the weapon. She paused, watching the walker as it tried to snatch her. She closed one eye, her hand slowly reaching for the pistol...

The chair suddenly creaked beneath the walker. The walker lurched forward towards the little girl. Clementine gasped and tried to move out of the way, but the walker grabbed her tight, causing it and her to fall to the floor. Lee's eyes met Clem's terrified ones. She began to scream, trying to wither and squirm her way out of the walker's grasp.

"_NO!" _Lee and the others thought in unison. Lee panicked, trying to get up but unable to due to his weakness.

"Get him! GET HIM!" Lee cried desperately. Clementine continued to struggle against the walker, crawling forwards past Lee in a desperate attempt to get away. She released a primal scream of pure terror that shook Lee to the core, upsetting him more than the virus in his body. "KILL IT! YOU HAVE TO KILL IT!" Lee yelled weakly. Clementine grabbed a nearby display stand, using it to help her inch away, gain some distance from the undead beast. Lee watched in horror as it began to topple dangerously above her.

"_It's going to fall on her!" _Doug cried, his voice strained with fear.

"_Lee, do something!" _Mark said desperately.

"Watch out!" Lee warned frantically, motioning his head towards the danger. Clementine raised her head and saw it. She kicked the walker off momentarily and crawled quickly out of its way, the walker following her. The glass statue bobbed unsteadily, until it slipped of its perch, aiming straight at Lee's forehead.

"_WATCH OUT YOU DUMBSHIT!" _Larry screamed as it fell. Lee put his hand up to protect his head, but it didn't stop it from hurting him. It didn't pierce, but it did hit him hard enough that it blurred Lee's vision temporarily. As his vision began to clear up, he could still hear Clem's terrified screams, the walker's inhumane growls. Lee moaned, unable to process what to do.

"_The baseball bat!"_ Duck's high-pitched panicky voice snapped Lee back on track. He tried to reach for it, but then he realized that his hand was cuffed. _Fuck!_

"_Not with your that hand, dumbass, you're other one, or your feet!_" Kenny hissed. _"Kick to her or something!"_

Lee angled his feet so his heel would be aligned with the bat. With a grunt, Lee slid the bat towards the struggling little girl.

Clementine saw the bat and quickly snatched it. She slammed into the walker's head. It loosened its grip and Clementine squirmed out of its grasp. She whacked again and again, grunting as she did so, the walker's movement's weakening at each hit. Blood splattered from its cranium, painting freckled on Clementine's face. She continued to whack him until it stopped moving completely.

Clementine took a few ragged breathes, panting. She gasped for air."I did it." She said, her voice cracking. "I got him."

"Great Clem. Good job." Lee praised softly. He would've turned his head to smile at her, but he felt so sick, that even the simple movement of turning his head became more painful than any experience he had ever known.

Clementine stared at him, her eyes pained. She stepped over the walker's body, taking another glance at Lee before crouching down to loot the body. Lee watched numbly, everything becoming hazy.

"_Lee... I think... I think it's time." _Carley murmured softly, _"There isn't much time left for you."_

"_You have to say your goodbyes."_ Doug mumbled sadly.

Lee shook his head, unable to bear leaving this girl alone! This was his girl! She was a daughter to him, the daughter he also wanted. He couldn't just leave her! He couldn't!

"_Lee..."_

Clementine turned around, finishing gathering what she had taken. She had taken the gun and held it in her small hands. She looked at Lee, who was barely hanging onto life now. Slowly, she approached him and crouched down, her eyes shining.

"Hey." Lee whispered at the teary-eyed girl. Clementine sniffled.

"You're strong Clem. You... you can do anything." Lee said,

"But... I'm little." She argued, her voice taking the high pitch of fear.

"Doesn't mean nothing." Lee said, "You're going to see bad stuff, but its okay." Lee encouraged quietly.

"My parents... It's so horrible..." Clementine whimpered.

"I can't imagine sweet pea."

"And now... you?" Her voice was full of disbelief, she was still in denial about all of this. She looked up to Lee with a look of despair and desperation. "PLEASE...Please don't be one of them. Please don't become a walker." She begged brokenly.

"There's only thing you can do." Lee said with deep regret, "You know that."

Clementine shook her head, "I don't know if I can."

Lee hesitated, waiting for the voices to talk to him. But all he heard was a deathly silence.

_This... This is my choice, no one can guide me with this decision... _Lee looked at Clementine, the little frail girl. She was already trying to process Lee's death in her mind, Lee thought that shooting him would scar her for life. He couldn't do that. He couldn't damage her anymore then he already had.

"You can leave me. It's okay." Lee finally said after a moment of thought.

"You'll be just like them!" Clementine whined pitifully.

"It's okay." Lee insisted, his voice getting softer with each word. "It won't be me."

"Leeee..." Clementine squeaked, bowing her head, sniffling even more now. Tears were forming in the corners of her eyes, her shoulders quivering.

"Clem, it's time to go." Lee urged her. "You got to get out of here."

"You can come with me." Clementine said desperately. Lee shook his head.

"No honey, I can't. It's okay."

"Please?" She pleaded, her voice strained, her eyes staring to stream a little.

"You have to go, now." Lee said with a gentle force.

"Maybe..." Clementine mumbled, "Maybe... I shouldn't let you turn."

"I don't want you to have to do that." Lee admitted, taking another slow breath. "Shooting things... It changes you sweetie. I don't want you to get used to it. You had to shoot that man before Clem, I don't want you getting used to it. Do you understand?"

"Yeah, Lee, I do." She said weakly, looking into his eyes.

"Only do it when you absolutely have to. Otherwise..." Lee trailed off, looking somewhere distant. He could feel it, something pulling him away, taking his life.

"I'll go." Clementine's broken voice snapped him back to reality. "I'll leave you. I'll go as fast as I can."

"And as safe as you can." Lee added. "Always be safe." Lee paused. "Find Omid... and Christa. They're probably looking for us right now. Stay on high ground. Don't go too far. You'll find them." Clementine nodded, a sob stuck in her throat. "They'll take good care of you." Lee said.

Clementine had now begun to sob, tears flowing from her eyes, her shoulders shaking horribly, her eyes beginning to look red. The soft whimpers and sobs strummed at Lee's heartstrings, making him feel more and more saddened by the whole situation. She was going to be alone now, for who knows how long. Suddenly, Lee thought of giving her some advice to keep her alive. So she would always survive.

"And Clem..." Lee whispered, catching the broken girl's attention. "Keep that hair short."

"I will." Clementine promised, nodding. "I'll cut it myself."

"Good." Lee put on a weak smile. "And also..."

His vision suddenly blurred, Clementine and the rest of his surrounding's disappearing. A ray of white flashed a few times. He could see something in the distance, something... someone... waving to him... calling for him... Lee blinked, taking heavy steps forward...

"_No! Not yet... but almost..."_

"What, what is it?" Clementine pressed frantically, bringing Lee back to reality. Lee opened his eyes, a bit disorientated. _Was... Was I imaging that?_ He shook his head, looking at Clem.

"No, don't worry." Lee soothed. "All right..."

He stared at Clementine, trying to etch her into his memory forever. He stared fondly at the girl, blinking slowly.

"I'll miss you."

Clementine sniffed, bobbing her head.

"Me too."

Looking at Lee, Clementine put her hand into Lee's, grasping it tight. Lee held her hand too, squeezed it, and made sure she knew how much he truly cared for her. They locked eyes for a moment, Clementine's soft and gentle gaze and Lee's near-dead blank eyes.

As her hand slowly retracted, so did Lee. The blur was coming back to him, the white flashes. Snippets of different voice were ringing in his mind.

"_It's okay baby..."_ His cheeks tingled as he took one step towards the people in the distance.

"_I'm so sorry this is happening..." _Sympathy, grief, no... This can't be happening!

"_This is... This fucking sucks..." _ Anger, denial. He couldn't do this, he couldn't just leave Clem alone!

"_I'm real sorry pal..." _ He had no choice... He was bitten...

"_Don't go..." _ He didn't want to... But he was being dragged away.

"_Lee... Oh no..." _ Regrets, mistakes, every fucked-up thing flashed before his eyes.

"_It's okay, you're okay, you're almost here..." _ Comfort. Wisdom. The gentle encouragement of death.

Slow steps. Baby steps, Weak at first, but gaining momentum.

He felt stronger.

He felt weaker.

A part of him was dying.

Another part felt reborn.

He could feel it. His death. Incoming...

He sighed, his head falling limp, resting on the radiator.

He sighed, his spirits breaking free from the shackles of life.

"_Come on pal."_

"_We're all waiting."_

"_Hurry up already..."_

"_No, take your time..."_

"_It's okay Lee..."_

_It's okay now..._

A flash of light dazzled him. Hypnotized, Lee walked away from his physical body.

And as he did, his corpse woke up.


End file.
